My final semester is coming to a close, and I thought to myself: what could I write about that might be helpful right now? Well, I know very little about my future right now (Yay, job hunting!), so I am looking to my past.
This time last year, I was finishing my first year of my MSW. I had a job for the summer, had some traveling, but still had a good amount of free time.
Let me tell you, I was stressing because I knew my second year would be tough, and I didn’t feel prepared. Ultimately, nothing is quite like on-the-job experience and I needed to take everything day-by-day, but here are five things I bought that helped prepare me for my second year:
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Things that Helped with Learning
TFCBT Training (click here for their website): I came into my second-year internship a little worried that I didn’t have too many clinical skills. Luckily, this training had videos, and I got to learn many therapy techniques (that I have used even outside of trauma cases). Bonus: This training actually helped me on a quiz AND my professor told us that simply having this training on your resume shows that you are receptive to evidence-based-practices!
Difficult Conversations: How to Discuss What Matters Most (click here for the one I bought): I read this book while traveling, and I got a lot from it. It helped me think about the way I communicate, and I teach clients some of the lessons in the book.
An English-Spanish Manual for Mental Health Professionals (click here for the one I bought): I was a bit worried knowing that I would need to do therapy sessions in Spanish so I bought this manual. It has things like an example consent form in Spanish and example phrases that can be used during intake and assessment.
Things that Were Just For Me
Bullet Journal (or any blank journal, click here for an example): I am someone who organizes/plans maybe excessively, but I am also someone who doesn’t have the money to buy one of those expensive planners. Bullet journals allow me to get what I need out of my planners… so long as I take the time to set them up. Hence, why I did it over summer. (Click here for someone else’s youtube video on bullet journaling)
Reusable Water Bottle (click here for an example): This may seem silly and you may already have one, but if you’re reading this, you’re probably a student. Are you drinking enough water? Cause I didn’t. My friends in my program didn’t. My intern friends and I would say “water!” everytime one of us remembered to drink water in the office, so everyone would need to take a drink. The water bottle was needed.
These are simply the things that helped me, and maybe they’ll be helpful for others.
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